Getty New England Patriots QB Mac Jones
The 2022 NFL season has been far from perfect for the New England Patriots and Mac Jones.
Both the team and the quarterback have struggled with New England boasting a 6-6 record while Jones has only thrown for 1,963 yards, seven touchdowns, and seven interceptions per Pro Football Reference.
Jones also had to deal with a high ankle sprain that forced the quarterback to miss some time. This allowed for Bailey Zappe to get some playing time and the rookie quarterback quickly became a cult hero.
After Jones’ impressive rookie season that saw him go to the Pro Bowl, he seemed to be the future under center for the Patriots. Now that picture isn’t as clear and ESPN’s Dan Orlovsky believes that Jones should ask for a trade.
“If I was Mac Jones and his reps/team and this off-season there are no plans for a true/proven OC to come into NE I would ask to be traded,” Orlovsky tweeted.
Is Jones Upset?
Week 13 was a perfect illustration of how frustrating the season has been for Jones. The Patriots quarterback could be seen going off on coaches and teammates in an expletive filled sideline rant.
Mac Jones is having the time of his life under Matt Patricia
Jones addressed the tirade after New England’s loss.
“Obviously, just kind of let my emotions get to me but we’re kind of playing from behind,” New England’s quarterback said. “What I said was about throwing it deeper in the short game. I got to execute that part better. But it’s the short game we kept going to, which is working. But I felt like we needed chunk plays. I shouted that out to kind of get everyone going. That’s emotional. That’s football. I’m passionate about this game. Obviously, you don’t want to let your emotions get the best of you. But yeah, I think that’s pretty much it. It wasn’t directed at anybody. Just emotion coming out and we kind of needed a spark. When you’re playing from behind against a pretty good team and a good offense, you need to go out there and make better plays. That starts with me. Definitely wasn’t good enough by me tonight. All you can do is watch the tape and see where we can get better. Playing catch-up is hard. We didn’t want to do that all game. I didn’t do a good enough job of getting ahead early, making it work. So tough one, but hats off to the Bills for playing a good game.“
How are Patriots Fans Reacting to the Struggles?
After nearly two decades of dominance, fans in New England are having to get used to rooting for a non-contender.
Still, longtime broadcaster Kirk Herbstreit was stunned by what he saw when the Patriots played the Bills.
“You know the thing that really caught me? The booth in New England is really low, like the fans are right there where you’re calling the game. I just felt a sense of acceptance of where they are,” Herbstreit recalled.
“It really shocked me. I’m just so used to watching the Patriots — 20 years of excellence, not just in the NFL, but in all sports,” he added. “And to see their fan base just kind of like, ‘Pfft. We suck. Whatever, game’s over.’ Early, they were like that.”